So find a comfortable seat where you feel supported and at ease,
But also alert and wakeful.
And if it supports you,
You're welcome to lie down or stand up for this meditation as well.
And here in the first few moments of stillness,
You might just take stock of your inner world,
Noticing what you're aware of.
Maybe some thoughts,
Some emotion present,
Some sensation in the body.
Maybe you notice sounds around you.
Some inner talk.
Just aware of what's here as you tune in.
And we'll begin the meditation by turning our attention to sounds.
Aware of the sounds of your world.
Maybe you notice the sound of my voice,
Or the sound of any electrical appliances or indoor appliances in the space that you're in.
Or maybe you're outdoors and you notice sounds of nature.
Without getting lost in any storylines or thoughts or imagery about the sounds.
See if you can just stay with the raw sensory input of what you hear listening.
See if you can notice any sounds that might be far away or close by.
Noticing if they change.
Or if they're steady.
If you're aware that there's nothing you need to do to reach out to sounds,
You can just rest back into awareness and let them come to you.
They sort of just enter effortlessly into your consciousness,
And maybe they stay around for a while,
And they might disappear on their own,
And you can just remain aware.
And if it supports you,
You can use the label,
Listening or hearing.
And we'll turn our attention now towards any inner sounds in our inner world.
You might notice any mental talk or inner dialogue,
Dialogue,
Or inner narration.
Just seeing what's present.
Not turning away from thoughts or trying to push them away or getting lost in them but opening up to the thinking mind,
Allowing ourselves to just see what's here.
See if you might be able to notice the subtle distinction between being inside of a thought being caught up in the story versus being aware that thinking is happening.
When you catch yourself you might use the label,
Thinking,
Or hearing.
You might notice that the sensory space is relatively quiet.
You don't notice a lot of inner talk.
That's fine too.
You can stay with your attention here,
Keeping the focus on the space,
This inner hearing space,
And maybe even enjoying the neutrality and the restfulness,
The lack of inner talk.
And you can turn the attention now towards the physical body,
Sensations that you feel that you detect moment by moment in the physical body.
Maybe you're aware of the feeling of your body at rest,
The weight of your body sitting or lying down or standing.
Maybe you notice the weight of your hands in your lap,
Or your feet on the ground.
Maybe you notice the feeling of lengthening your spine,
As you sit up tall.
Staying here staying in the space of physical body sensation.
You might allow your awareness to cover the whole body and seeing what you notice.
And if you notice any particular sensations that may feel challenging or uncomfortable.
See if you can tune into them with some curiosity.
Can you pick up on any details about them.
You might notice tingling or pressure or vibrating.
You might notice if they move or expand or contract or change in any way.
Rather than getting caught up in any thoughts or distractions or imagery about the sensations.
Just seeing if you can really stay with the direct physical sensation,
Bringing some curiosity and intrigue there.
And letting your mind stay here,
Noticing physical sensation.
And you can now direct the attention towards the inner emotional body.
Perhaps noticing the presence of any emotions you might be aware of in this moment.
Maybe you notice calm or restlessness.
Agitation.
Tiredness.
Excitement.
Joy.
Boredom.
Whatever you notice.
Just aware of what's here,
Welcoming it.
And maybe seeing if you can locate where it lives in your body.
How do you know that you're feeling it.
Noticing and allowing the presence of any emotional experiences in the body to simply exist as they are staying present to them.
Maybe watching them,
Seeing what there is to learn.
And we'll bring the attention now towards this inner mental imagery space.
You might notice that you're aware of just a subtle visual sensation of where you are in space right now as you're sitting.
Or maybe you notice that other sensations and the sun,
Other sensory spaces elicit some kind of imagery in the mind,
Maybe you hear sound you feel a sensation and you notice a mental image pop up in response.
Just staying with this space of mental imagery,
Internal seeing.
And maybe you don't notice a whole lot here.
Maybe it's relatively restful.
And that's okay.
Can you stay with that and enjoy the neutrality,
The restfulness of this sensory space.
And finally,
I'll invite you to open the eyes and bring your attention to sites of the world,
Maintaining this same level of clarity and concentration.
You might notice colors,
Shapes,
Light.
You might notice some activation and other sensory spaces and again you can allow that to be present in the background of your attention,
While you maintain your focus on seeing.
You might use the label.
See if it supports you and if you're aware of your visual world.
And as we move out of formal practice.
I'll invite you to see if you can maintain some level of background awareness,
What's going on in each of these sensory spaces,
As you move through the rest of your day.
You can make any gentle movements that feel good and supportive.
Thank you so much for meditating.
